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WorksheetsAP US Government and Politics
Total questions: 105
Worksheet time: 1hrs 10mins
The primary economic faliure of the Articles of Confederation was that
national debt needed to be paid off by individual states
Congress could not collect taxes
there was no system for states to pay back their debts
individuals were taxed directly by the national government
The Constitution differs from the Declaration of Independence in that it does not focus on the individual rights of the governed, but rather on
the rights of the government
the synthesis of government and citizen
the structure and function of the government
the promotion of a republican system
The importance of the separation of powers in the American government system is
protection of citizens from government institution
limitations of the federal government's power
clearly defined responsibilities and authority for each branch
executive authority that ensures the other branches meet their responsibilities
What is Judicial Review?
The courts can review laws and declare them unconstitutional
Judges have a review system for some court cases
The courts have the ability to reverse a decision
In a pluralist democracy, who has the most influence on government policy
The wealthy and elite
The average voter
Interest Groups
The Elderly
Which of the following was not a weakness of the Articles of Confederation?
There was no national military
Congress could not directly tax the people
There was no national currency
States had to vote unanimously to pass laws
The Great (Connecticut) Compromise created a
Bicameral Legislature
An independent court system
The electoral college
A single executive
Levying and Collecting taxes is an example of a
Delegated Power
Reserved Power
Concurrent Power
Denied Power
What power gives the Supreme Court the ability to limit the power of the other branches?
Impeachment
Judicial Review
Writs of Certiorari
Writs of Habeas Corpus
If the president vetoes a bill, how can the veto be overridden?
By a majority vote of the Supreme Court
By a 2/3 vote of the Senate
By a 2/3 vote of both house of Congress
By a majority vote in both houses
In Federalist No. 10, which of the following does Madison argues prevents tyranny of the majority?
Direct Democracy
A Confederation of Small Republics
A large Republic
An absolute monarchy
Who has the power of advice and consent to confirm presidential nominees?
Senate
House of Representatives
Both houses of Congress
Supreme Court
The concept that the government's powers should be predefined and restricted by a constitution
Limited Government
Popular sovereignty
National Supremacy
Natural rights
Which of the following tools can the federal government use most effectively to shape state policies?
Revenue Sharing
Block Grants
Categorical Grants
Mandates
Which constitutional provision requires other states to recognize a New Jersey driver's license?
Commerce Clause
Full Faith and Credit Clause
Necessary and Proper Clause
10th Amendment
Miranda V. Arizona set what precedent?
Peaceably protesting in schools
a non segregated education (overturned Plessy)
You must have your rights read to you upon arrest
Separate but equal
The writers of the Constitution established a bicameral legislature in order to
provide equal representation in one house for all of the states.
make it more difficult for Congress to declare war in the future.
streamline the process whereby a bill becomes a law.
prevent Congress from imitating the British Parliament.
In the United States, an accused person is presumed innocent until
He/she is proven guilty in a court of law
Evidence against him/her has been discovered
Police obtain an arrest warrant from a court
Eyewitnesses testify against him/ her in a court of law
The case of Miranda v. Arizona involved the issue(s)
1st amendment rights
Due Process
Obscenity
Self-incrimination
The U.S. Supreme Court works chiefly as a(n)
civil court.
criminal court.
appeals court.
military court.
Which compromise describes how the Founders resolved the issues of slavery and taxes?
The Great Compromise
The 3/5's Compromise
The Connecticut Compromise
The New Jersey Plan
Which of the following most accurately describes The Federalist Papers?
A Popular Anti-British Booklet of the Pre-Revolutionary Era
Essays Arguing for the Adoption of the U.S. Constitution
The Federalist Platform under President Adams
Congressional acts that defines relations between the states
Individuals voluntarily agree to create a government to secure and protect members of society:
Evolutionary Theory
Divine Right Theory
Social Contract Theory
Pluralist Theory
The debate between the Federalists and Anti-Federalists were primarily about which of the following issues?
The right of the people to rebel
The existence of slavery
The scope of power of the central government
The need to establish a standard currency
The representation of large and small states
Which of the following constitutional principles most directly addresses the relationship between the state and national governments?
checks and balance
separation of powers
representation
federalism
The Bill of Rights
The Constitution divides responsibilities between state and federal governments.
popular sovereignty
checks and balances
federalism
republicanism
The Constitution begins with "We the People..." to show the people have the power over government.
popular sovereignty
federalism
checks and balances
"By a faction, I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adverse to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community"
Federalist #10
Federalist #51
Federalist #70
Federalist #78
“But if, on the other hand, this form of government contains principles that will lead to the subversion of liberty—if it tends to establish a despotism, or, what is worse, a tyrannic aristocracy; then, if you adopt it, this only remaining assylum for liberty will be shut up, and posterity will execrate your memory.”
Declaration of Independence
Articles of Confederation
Brutus #1
Federalist #10
“If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary”
Federalist #10
Federalist #51
Federalist #70
Federalist #78
"Now, in a large extended country, it is impossible to have a representation, possessing the sentiments, and of integrity, to declare the minds of the people, without having it so numerous and unwieldly, as to be subject in great measure to the inconveniency of a democratic government."
Articles of Confederation
Federalist #10
Federalist #51
Brutus #1
"Let us now proceed to enquire . . . whether it be best the thirteen United States should be reduced to one great republic, or not? It is here taken for granted, that all agree in this, that whatever government we adopt, it ought to be a free one; that it should be so framed as to secure the liberty of the citizens of America, and such an one as to admit of a full, fair, and equal representation of the people."
Articles of Confederation
Brutus #1
Federalist #10
Letter from Birmingham Jail
"Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed
forever. The yearning for freedom eventually
manifests itself..."
Declaration of Independence
Brutus #1
Federalist #51
Letter from Birmingham jail
Which of the following options represents the majority opinion in US v Lopez?
Individuals have the right to own and carry guns
The power of the federal government in relation to state governments is limited in this case
The Commerce Clause gives Congress broad powers to determine the constitutionality of laws
Even small, local events ultimately have an effect on interstate commerce
In the McCulloch v Maryland 1819 decision, which two provisions in the Constitution were upheld and strengthened?
Congress's power to regulate commerce and to levy taxes
The necessary and proper clause and the Supremacy Clause
The 1st and 10th Amendment
The Full Faith and Credit Clause and the extradition clause
Which of the following statements is true regarding the Court's decision in Marbury v Madison 1803?
It resolved a dispute about Congress's commerce power
It established the principle of stare decisis
It overturned part of an act of Congress
It established the supremacy of federal law
What was the effect of the opinion in Schenck v United States?
People can say or express anything as long as the nation is not at war
During wartime, no person can criticize the US government
Free speech was expanded in the US
As long as speech does not present a clear and present danger, it is allowed
In what way do the decisions in Engel v Vitale and Wisconsin v Yoder differ?
One suggests a public policy creates an establishment of religion, while the other suggests a public policy denies a free exercise of religion
One was decided on free speech grounds and one was decided on free press grounds
One preserved the governmental policy and the other struck down a governmental policy
One was during wartime and one was during peacetime
Which of the following is a result of the Gideon v Wainwright decision?
Evidence acquired without a warrant will be excluded from the defendant's trial.
No state can prevent a woman from having an abortion
Police must tell arrested suspects that they have a right against self-incrimination
States must provide poor defendants with public defense attorneys
According to Roe v. Wade, what could a state do if it wanted to limit a woman’s right to an abortion during her first trimester?
The state could do very little to limit a woman’s right to an abortion.
The state could ban it.
The state could regulate it if the mother’s life were in danger.
The state could ban the abortion unless the mother’s life was in danger.
On which constitutional principle did the Supreme Court base it’s ruling in Citizens United?
freedom of speech
freedom to remain silent
freedom of expression
equal protection
Shaw v Reno
Prohibited gerrymandering
Ended court interference in congressional redistricting
Ruled that redistricting must comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1965
Restricted racial gerrymandering
The doctrine of prior restraint says that the government cannot prevent speech or publication __________.
that is critical of the government
that is illegal
after the fact
before the fact
Which of the following statements identifies the Supreme Court’s decision in Tinker v. Des Moines?
Schools can suspend students whose actions stimulate class discussions
The First Amendment protects non-disruptive expression within schools
Students can express their opinions in any way they choose in school
Clothing cannot be categorized as a form of speech
Which of the following did the Supreme Court permit in New York Times v. United States?
printing military strategies during the Vietnam War
publishing papers regarding government decisions during the Vietnam War
Nixon’s invocation of executive privilege
investigations into presidential corruption
In Brown v Board of Education, the Supreme Court based its decision on which provision of the 14th Amendment?
Automatic citizenship for persons born in the US
Equal Protection under the law
Due Process Clause
Fellowship Clause of Rights
Financial donations with specific limits made to campaign committees or political parties by individuals or PACS.
free money
donations
soft money
Hard money
The "separate but equal" doctrine as it applies to public education is unconstitutional; separate schools are inherently unequal. The court overturned Plessy v. Ferguson. The question before the court was if it was okay to have schools based on race, that were not equal. It integrated schools.
Tinker v Des Moines
Baker v Carr
Brown v Board
Engel v Vitale
a committee set up by a corporation, labor union, or interest group that raises and spends campaign money from voluntary donations
PAC
Super PAC
Interest Group
527 organization
Which of the following constitutional provisions broadened the power of Congress?
the equal protection clause
the 10th Amendment
the necessary and proper clause
the eminent domain provision in the 5th Amendment
Established the Supremacy of the US Constitution and federal laws over state laws
Marbury v. Madison
McCullouch v. Maryland
US v. Lopez
New York Times Co. v. United States
Congress may not use the commerce clause to make possession of a gun in a school zone a federal crime
United States v. Lopez
McDonald v. Chicago
Gideon v. Wainwright
Roe v. Wade
School sponsorship of religious activities (teacher led / directed prayer) violates the establishment clause
Tinker v. Des Moines
Engel v. Vitale
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Schenck v. United States
Compelling Amish students to attend school past the 8th grade violates the Free Exercise Clause of the 1st Amendment
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Engel v. Vitale
United States v. Lopez
Baker v. Carr
Compelling Amish students to attend school past the 8th grade violates the Free Exercise Clause of the 1st Amendment
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Engel v. Vitale
United States v. Lopez
Baker v. Carr
Public school students have the right to wear black arm bands in school to protest the Vietnam war
Wisconsin v. Yoder
Shaw v. Reno
Tinker v. Des Moines
Brown v. Board of Education
Bolstered freedom of the press, establishing a "heavy presumption against prior restraint" even in cases involving national security
Schenck v. United States
New York Times Co. v. United States
Mc Donald v. Chicago
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission
Speech creating a "clear and present danger" is not protected by the 1st Amendment
Schenck v. United States
Roe v. Wade
United States v. Lopez
Engel v. Vitale
Guaranteed the right to an attorney for the poor or indigent
Schenck v. United States
Miranda v. Arizona
Gideon v. Wainwright
Marbury v. Madison
Extended the right to privacy to a woman's decision to have an abortion
Roe v. Wade
Griswold v. Connecticut
Wisconsin v. Yoder
McDonald v. Chicago
The Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms for self defense is applicable to the states
Gideon v. Wainwright
McDonald v. Chicago
Roe v. Wade
Shaw v. Reno
Race based school segregation violates the Equal Protection Clause
Brown v. Board of Education
Baker v. Carr
Tinker v. Des Moines
McCullouch v. Maryland
This case overturned the Superme Court decision in Plessy v. Ferguson.
Mc Donald v. Chicago
Engel v. Vitale
Brown v. Board of Education
Citizens United v. FEC
This case reverses a trend of expanding federal power and limits the government's ability to act pursuant to the Commerce Clause
Marbury v. Madison
New York Times v. United States
Mc Cullouch v. Maryland
United States v. Lopez
This case gives meaning to the Necessary and Proper Clause and says that the federal government has powers not expressly listed in the Constitution (i.e. implied powers)
Marbury v. Madison
US v. Lopez
McCullouch v. Maryland
Roe v. Wade
Check all that apply: These cases deal with the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment
Baker v. Carr
Brown v. Board of Education
Citizens United v. FEC
Tinker v. Des Moines
Which of the following statements about the Senate is true?
Each state is represented in the Senate according to its population.
The Senate, unlike the House, has a Rules Committee.
The Senate is more responsible than the House for initiating appropriations legislation.
Individual senators can exercise substantial influence over the legislative process.
Which of the following statements about gerrymandering is true?
It has been banned by United States Supreme Court decisions starting with Baker v. Carr
It was used traditionally to maintain urban control of the House of Representatives.
It can be used by a political party to draw boundary lines to control as many districts as possible.
It guarantees greater constituency control over elected representatives.
Which of the following is an example of congressional oversight?
Assisting constituents with particular problems
Holding hearings for review of an executive agency's activities
Reporting campaign contributions to the Federal Election Commission
Conducting ethics investigations of congressional leadership
Advocates of shifting the task of drawing United States House districts from state legislatures to independent commissions are likely to claim which of the following as an advantage of independent commissions?
Independent commissions are more likely to create majority-minority districts districts where they are appropriate.
Independent commissions are more likely to create districts where minor parties are victorious.
House districts drawn by independent commissions are immune from challenges by the United States Department of Justice.
Independent commissions significantly reduce the influence of partisan gerrymandering in the redistricting process.
After a national census has been taken, changes in population distribution cause the changing of congressional seats among the states. This effect is commonly called
Congressional redistricitng
Apportionment
Gerrymandering
Repportionment
Which of the following is NOT true of the Congress?
Each house determines its own leadership and rules.
Terms of Congress last for two years.
Congress is unicameral in nature.
Only the President may call special sessions of Congress.
Which of the following best describes a non-legislative power of Congress?
Power to declare war
Power to tax
Impeachment power
Power to regulate commerce
Which if the following is NOT considered to be a contributing factor to the incumbency effect?
name recognition
voting record
educational background
experience in campaigning
Which of the following is an accurate comparison of the House of Representatives and the Senate?
The Speaker of the House may only vote to break a tie in the House, and the President of the Senate may vote on any legislation before the Senate.
In the House members can delay the vote on legislation by filibustering, and in the Senate members must send all legislation through the Rules Committee.
In the House members represent the entire state, and in the Senate members represent districts within the state.
The Speaker of the House is the most powerful position in the House, and the majority leader is the most powerful position in the Senate.
( DOC 1) Which of the following statements can be supported by the data in the chart?
Americans are becoming consistently more conservative over time.
Majorities in the Senate typically come from the same party as the president.
Midterm elections tend to attract more Republican voters than Democratic voters.
Staggered term lengths disrupt existing coalitions and the ruling party of the Senate.
When making an appointment to the Supreme Court, presidents
remain impartial by refusing candidate endorsements from the Supreme Court
often select a candidate who is neither decidedly liberal or conservative
tend to ignore race as a consideration for selecting a judge
tend to choose judges from their own political party
(DOC 3) Which of the following powers of the President best embodies the type of executive action Hamilton is arguing for?
Appointing cabinet officials
Commander-in-chief of the armed forces
Signing a bill into law
Delivering the State of the Union
In this role, the president is the ceremonial figurehead of America.
Head of State
Party Chief
Chief Executive
Commander-in-Chief
